CVE-2023-1257
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedAn attacker with physical access to the affected Moxa UC Series devices can initiate a restart of the device and gain access to its BIOS. Command line options can then be altered, allowing the attacker to access the terminal. From the terminal, the attacker can modify the device’s authentication files to create a new user and gain full access to the system.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceAn attacker with physical access to Moxa UC Series devices can initiate a device restart, gain BIOS access, modify command line options to access the terminal, and then alter authentication files to create an unauthorized user with full system privileges.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data>= 1.3, <= 1.5>= 1.3, <= 1.5>= 1.3, <= 1.5>= 1.3, <= 1.5>= 1.3, <= 1.5>= 1.3, <= 1.5>= 1.3, <= 1.5all versions>= 1.3, <= 1.5CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Physical
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify device modelCheck the device label or access the device console and run 'uname -a' or check the web interface to confirm the exact model number (e.g., UC-2101, UC-2102, UC-2104, UC-2111, UC-2112, UC-2114T, UC-2116T)Affected if Device is a Moxa UC-2101, UC-2102, UC-2102T, UC-2104, UC-2111, UC-2112, UC-2114T, or UC-2116T series
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Check installed firmware versionAccess the device web interface under System > Firmware or run 'cat /etc/moxa-release' or 'moxiadm get system info' from console to obtain the firmware version numberAffected if Firmware version is >= 1.3 and <= 1.5 (or for UC-2114T, any version)
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Verify physical access controlsInspect the physical location of the device; verify it is in a locked cabinet, restricted area, or behind controlled access points without public exposureAffected if Device is in an accessible public or uncontrolled area where physical attackers could reach it
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Confirm BIOS password is setReboot the device and access BIOS setup (typically press Del or F2 during boot); check if a BIOS password is required to enter setup or change boot optionsAffected if BIOS password is not set or BIOS can be accessed without authentication
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Check for unauthorized system usersFrom console or SSH, run 'cat /etc/passwd' or 'getent passwd' to list all users; check for unknown accounts beyond expected administrator accountsAffected if Unexpected users exist in /etc/passwd or authentication files have been modified
The device is affected if it is a Moxa UC-210x or UC-211x series with firmware between 1.3 and 1.5 (or any version for UC-2114T) and lacks physical security, BIOS passwords, or shows unauthorized accounts.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataImplement physical security controls (restricted access to devices), enable BIOS passwords, and disable unauthorized boot options to prevent physical attackers from accessing BIOS and terminal functions.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-1257 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-1257 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data